Optical beam pulse generator

ABSTRACT

An optical beam pulse generator comprises segmented reflecting means aligned to receive an input light beam. The segmented and reflecting means includes a plurality of circumferentially spaced apart mirror facets having a centrally located, vertically oriented axis of rotation and mirror facet to axis errors. The segmented reflecting means is rotated to sequentially reflect the input beam to generate a pulsed beam. A prism or similar device redirects the pulse beam back onto the reflecting means to generate a redirected pulse beam vertically displaced from the pulse beam by a distance related to the mirror facet to axis error and laterally offset from the pulse beam by a distance related to the angle between the mirror facet and the input light beam. The redirected pulsed beam is reflected from each of the mirror facets to generate a pulsed reflected output beam.

This application is a Continuation-in-Part of U.S. patent applicationSer No. 320,331, filed Nov. 12, 1981 now U.S. Pat. No. 4,433,894.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an optical beam pulse generator andmore particularly to a beam pulse generator for eliminating facet toaxis errors from the output signal of the pulse generator.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Mirror to rotational axis error presents serious problems in the designof precision optical scanning systems. In optical scanners utilizingpolygon mirrors, the mirror facets typically are ground with a facet torotational axis error on the order of plus or minus thirty seconds. Upto the present time, it has been possible to achieve facet to axis errortolerances of on the order of plus or minus five seconds, but achievingsuch close tolerances is costly, time consuming and requires anextremely high level of skill. In some optical scanner applications, itis desirable to virtually eliminate the effects of the facet to axiserror of the polygon mirror so that the scanned optical output signalretraces precisely the same path during each scan.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,897,132 (Meeussen) discloses a facet to axis errorcorrection system for a rotating polygon mirror which utilizes a cornerreflector mirror in combination with a positive lens. Column 4, lines18-21 of this patent discloses that reflective prisms may be substitutedfor the reflective plane mirror surfaces. Because of the relativeplacement of the polygon mirror, the corner reflector mirror and thepositive lens, the Meeussen optical scanning device generates a curved,scanned optical output beam.

Another device for eliminating or minimizing the facet to axis error ina polygon optical scanner is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,054,361(Noguchi). In this device, a beam of collimated light is passed throughor reflected by a single optical element a first time to form a lineimage on the rotating polygon mirror. The reflected beam of light fromthe polygon mirror facet is passed through or reflected by the opticalelement a second time and the resulting collimated beam is passedthrough the image forming optical system to form a light spot on theimage plane. As the polygon mirror is rotated, the light spotsuccessively scans the image plane without any displacements of thescanning line resulting from facet to axis error.

Another system for eliminating the effects of facet to axis error isdisclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,054,360 (Osaka). This device utilizes apolygon mirror in combination with three lenses and a planar mirror togenerate a scanned optical output signal free of the effects of facet toaxis errors.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,762,793 (Ullstig); 3,750,189 (Fleischer); 3,865,465(Tatuoka) and 3,995,110 (Starkweather) disclose various types of opticalscanning systems which utilize a first cylindrical lens positionedbetween a light source and a rotating polygon mirror and a secondcylindrical lens positioned between the polygon mirror and a focusinglens to correct for the mirror facet to axis errors.

Another prior art system measures the facet to axis error of each mirrorfacet of a polygon mirror. The reflected output beam from the polygonmirror is passed through an acoustic modulator which is programmed tocorrect the deviation of the beam from each mirror facet by an amountprecisely equal to the facet to axis error of each facet of the polygonmirror. This system is only capable of correcting for static errors andcannot correct dynamic facet to axis errors caused by polygon mirrorsupport bearing deflections or thermally generated errors.

In another related prior art system, a feedback compensation systemdetects errors in the beam of light reflected from the leading edge ofeach facet of a rotating polygon mirror. A correction signal isgenerated which controls an acoustic modulator to compensate fornon-repeatable, dynamic errors. This prior art feedback compensationsystem is not capable of correcting for facet to axis errors which takeplace during the scan of a mirror facet and therefore cannot completelyeliminate facet to axis errors.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide anoptical scanning method and apparatus which utilizes only one or a pairof inexpensive, fixed optical elements to completely eliminate theeffect of facet to axis errors on the scanned optical output beamgenerated by the optical scanner.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an opticalscanning method and apparatus which can generate either a linear or acurved scanned optical output beam.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an opticalscanning method and apparatus which can be utilized in combination withan optical feedback system to scan a target and to detect defects in thetarget.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an opticalscanning method and apparatus fabricated from standard, commerciallyavailable components.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an opticalscanning method and apparatus which can correct for mirror to rotationalaxis errors of at least one half of one degree.

Briefly stated, and in accord with one embodiment of the invention, anoptical scanner generates an optical output beam which repetitivelyscans a fixed path by utilizing a mirror which is repetitively rotatedthrough a predetermined angular displacement. The angle between themirror axis of rotation and the mirror varies between each mirrordeflection and defines a mirror rotational axis error. An input lightbeam is directed onto the rotating mirror along a first path to producea first scanned reflected output beam for each rotation of the mirror. Asecond scanned reflected output beam is generated during each rotationof the mirror by redirecting the first scanned reflected output beamthrough a prism and back onto the mirror along a second path. The secondpath is vertically displaced from the first path by a distance relatedto the mirror rotational axis error. Each point at which the secondscanned reflected output beam intercepts the mirror is laterally offsetfrom a corresponding point at which the input light beam intercepts themirror by a distance related to the relative angle between the mirrorand the input light beam. A third scanned reflected output beam isgenerated by reflecting the second scanned reflected output beam fromthe mirror. Repetitive rotations of the mirror produce a plurality ofthird scanned reflected output beams which define a grouping ofnon-coincident surfaces which are also non-intersecting with respect tothe input light beam. The plurality of third scanned reflected outputbeams are converged onto the fixed path such that the optical outputbeam repetitively scans the fixed path without any perceptible effectscaused by the mirror rotational axis error.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention is pointed out with particularity in the appended claims.However, other objects and advantages together with the operation of theinvention may be better understood by reference to the followingdetailed description taken in connection with the followingillustrations wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the elements of the optical scanner ofthe present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view from above of the optical scanner illustrated in FIG.1, taken along section line 2--2.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the prism illustrated in FIG. 2, takenalong section line 3--3.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the optical scanner illustrated in FIG. 2,taken along section line 4--4.

FIG. 5 is a view from above of an optical scanner utilizing a polygonmirror having a significant facet to axis error.

FIG. 6 is a view from the side of the optical scanner illustrated inFIG. 5, particularly illustrating the reflection error created by themirror facet to axis error and the corrective effect of the prism onthis error.

FIG. 7 is a second view of the optical scanner illustrated in FIG. 5,particularly illustrating the polygon mirror rotated in acounterclockwise direction from the neutral position illustrated in FIG.5.

FIG. 8 is an elevational view of a second embodiment of the opticalscanner of the present invention, particularly illustrating the pathtravelled by the optical beam when the facet to axis error of thepolygon mirror is equal to zero.

FIG. 9 is an elevational view of a second embodiment of the opticalscanner of the present invention, particularly illustrating the pathtravelled by the optical beam when a significant facet to axis errorexists.

FIGS. 10A-C depict the first path of the input light beam and the secondpath of the second scanned reflected output beam for zero, negative andpositive facet to axis errors.

FIGS. 11A-C correspond respectively to FIGS. 10A-C and depict the travelpath of the various light beams between the polygon mirror and the prismof the optical scanner.

FIG. 12 depicts a family of non-coincident surfaces of the type whichmight be created by facet to axis errors in the optical scannerembodiment depicted in FIG. 1.

FIG. 13 depicts a curved family of non-coincident surfaces of the typewhich might be created by facet to axis errors in the optical scannerembodiment depicted in FIG. 8.

FIG. 14 depicts the configuration of an optical scanner incorporating aplanar mirror which is rotated back and forth within a defined arc by agalvanometer movement coupled to the mirror.

FIG. 15 illustrates an embodiment of the optical scanner incorporatingan equilateral prism.

FIG. 16 depicts an optical scanning system which includes a detector formeasuring the effect of a target on the scanned optical output beam.

FIG. 17 illustrates an optical scanner which converts a large diameterinput light beam into a scanned optical output beam.

FIG. 18 illustrates an optical scanning device which is configured tofunction as a receiver to detect photon sources lying within the scannerfield of view.

FIGS. 19A and B represent perspective views of a dual mirror embodimentof the optical scanner which includes an optical beam pulse generatorfor sequentially directing a single input signal onto the facets of anupper polygon mirror and a lower polygon mirror.

FIG. 20 is a perspective view of a galvanometer driven, planar mirrorembodiment of the dual mirror optical scanner of the present invention.

FIG. 21 depicts an embodiment of the present invention which utilizes asingle converging means to converge the optical output signal from thescanner and to form a part of a telescopic beam expander for the inputsignal.

FIG. 22 depicts a dual mirror optical scanner which receives twoseparate optical input signals.

FIGS. 23A-C depict the manner in which an optical input signaltransitions from a first mirror facet to a second mirror facet.

FIGS. 24A-E depict the effect of various orientations of an opticalinput signal on the optical output scan generated by the optical scannerof the present invention.

FIG. 25 depicts a single mirror optical scanner which is capable ofreceiving a plurality of independent input signals and processing eachinput signal through separate redirecting means.

FIG. 26 is a perspective view of an optical beam pulse generator whichdoes not operate in conjunction with an optical scanner.

FIGS. 27, 28A, 29, 30A and 31 depict various embodiments of segmentedmirror 112 usable with the present invention. Segmented mirror 112depicted in FIG. 29 is supported and driven by the group of three idlerwheels that contact the circumference of the mirror.

FIGS. 28B and 30B indicate the amplitude variations in the output signalgenerated by the mirror sections of segmented mirror 112.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

In order to better illustrate the advantages of the invention and itscontributions to the art, a preferred hardware embodiment of theinvention will now be described in some detail.

Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2, a beam of collimated light is generatedby a laser 10 or equivalent device. The collimated light beam isreflected by a relay mirror 12 to form an input light beam 14 which isdirected onto the facets of a rotating polygon mirror 16. The rotationalaxis of mirror 16 is indicated by the vertically oriented linedesignated by reference number 18.

In FIG. 2, the solid line depiction of mirror facet 20 corresponds to amirror facet positioned at the mid-point of a scan. The dotted linedepiction of mirror facet 20 illustrates a further counter-clockwiserotational displacement of polygon mirror 16.

In the facet mid-position depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2, input light beam 14strikes mirror facet 20 at a point equi-distant from the two verticaledges of the facet. The reflection of input light beam 14 from mirrorfacet 20 at this mid-position produces a first scanned reflected outputbeam 22 which is directed into the lower portion of the hypotenuse facetof an internal reflecting right angle prism 24. FIGS. 1 and 3 illustratethat first beam 22 is reflected upward by a first face of prism 24 at apoint designated by reference number 26. This vertically oriented lightbeam then strikes the second face of prism 24 at a point designated byreference number 28 and is redirected back toward mirror facet 20 toform a second scanned reflected output beam designated by referencenumber 30. Since in FIGS. 1-3 mirror facet 20 is shown at itsmid-position, the point designated by reference number 32 where inputlight beam 14 strikes mirror facet 20 and the point designated byreference number 34 where the second scanned reflected output beam 30strikes mirror facet 20 are vertically aligned with one another.

Second scanned reflected output beam 30 is reflected at point 34 fromthe face of mirror facet 20 and generates a third scanned reflectedoutput beam 36. The third scanned reflected output beam 36 is directedthrough converging means in the form of a positive lens 38 and isfocussed onto a fixed path on a target which is repetitively scanned bythe scanned output beam generated by the optical scanner.

FIG. 4 represents an elevational view of the optical scanner depicted inFIGS. 1 and 2 and illustrates that the horizontal axis of polygon mirror16 and the mid-point of prism 24 are oriented in the same plane and areorthogonal to each other. Input light beam 14 travels below the thirdscanned reflected output beam 36. Since mirror facet 20 is illustratedas having a facet to axis error of zero, FIGS. 1 and 4 clearly depictthat both input light beam 14 and first scanned reflected output beam 22lie in the same horizontal plane while the second scanned reflectedoutput beam 30 and the third scanned reflected output beam 36 lie inanother horizontal plane.

The dotted line depiction of mirror 16 in FIG. 2 illustrates facet 20 ata point after it has been rotated beyond its mid-position. With thismirror facet rotational orientation, first scanned reflected output beam22 is angularly deflected to a second position designated by referencenumber 22'. FIG. 3 illustrates that first scanned reflected output beam22' strikes the lower surfacet of prism 24 at a point designated byreference number 40 and is deflected upward and laterally outward to apoint designated by reference number 42 where the light beam isredirected back toward mirror facet 20 to form an angularly displacedsecond scanned reflected output beam designated by reference number 30'.Upon reflection from mirror facet 20, these rays become the thirdscanned reflected output beam 36 which is focussed by lens 38.

FIG. 10A depicts the first path 44 travelled by input light beam 14across the face of mirror facet 20 while reference number 46 depicts thesecond path which corresponds to the optical track of second scannedreflected output beam 30 across the face of mirror facet 20. As in FIG.1, reference number 32 designates the point at which input light beam 14strikes mirror facet 20 when mirror facet 20 is at its mid-position,while reference number 34 designates the point at which thecorresponding second scanned reflected output beam 30 strike mirrorfacet 20. Reference number 48 designates the position of input lightbeam 14 which generates a second scanned reflected output beam 30 at thelateral edge of mirror facet 20 as is designated by reference number 50.Reference numbers 52 and 54 designate corresponding positions of inputlight beam 14 and second scanned reflected output beam 30 at thebeginning of a scanned output trace. The arrows designated by referencenumbers 56 and 58 indicate the direction of travel of input light beam14 and second scanned reflected output beam 30 across the face of mirrorfacet 20 which defines respectively a first path 44 and a second path46.

FIG. 10A also indicates that input light beam 14 traces a pathdesignated by the dotted line segments lying on either side of firstpath 44, but does not generate a first scanned reflected output beam 22which intercepts the face of prism 24. These dotted line scan segmentstherefore correspond to dead time and do not create a usable scannedoutput signal. Because the third scanned reflected output signal isreflected twice from each mirror facet, its angular rate of deflectionis effectively increased or "amplified." Third scanned reflected outputbeam 36 is angularly deflected at a rate four times faster than the rateof rotation of polygon mirror 16. Third scanned reflected output beam 36is deflected by each mirror facet through the same arc as in aconventional optical scanner, although it is deflected through this arcin one half the time. The remaining scan time corresponds to the deadtime depicted in FIG. 10A.

Referring now to FIGS. 5 and 6, input light beam 14 is incident uponmirror facet 21 of polygon mirror 16. Mirror facet 21 has apredetermined facet to axis error as is evidenced by the fact that theupper surface of facet 21 is closer to rotational axis 18 of mirror 16than is the lower surface of mirror facet 21. This orientation of facetto axis error will be referred to as "negative error" since the surfaceof mirror facet 21 has essentially been rotated in a counterclockwisedirection from a zero facet to axis error position. The term "positiveerror" will be utilized to refer to what is equivalent to a clockwiserotation of the surface of mirror facet 21 and occurs when the uppersurface of mirror facet 21 is positioned at a greater distance fromrotational axis 18 than the lower surface of mirror facet 21. FIGS. 5and 6 depict mirror facet 21 at its rotational mid-position.

Since mirror facet 21 is no longer perpendicular to input light beam 14,first scanned reflected output beam 22 will be reflected upward at anangle equal to twice the negative error of mirror facet 21. In FIG. 6,reference number 60 indicates the upward deflection angle of firstscanned reflected output beam 22 caused by the negative facet to axiserror of mirror facet 21.

First scanned reflected output beam 22 is directed onto the hypotenuseface of prism 24 and is redirected through the prism toward mirror facet21 to generate second scanned reflected output beam 30. The normaloperation of prism 24 causes second scanned reflected output beam 30 tobe precisely parallel to first scanned reflected output beam 22. Whilefirst scanned reflected output beam 22 had an error angle designated byreference number 60 which was displaced above a horizontal plane, secondscanned reflected output beam 30 will have an error angle designated byreference number 62 which is equal but opposite to error angle 60. Thusprism 24 has effectively reversed the sign of the error angle so thatwhen second scanned reflected output beam 30 is reflected a second timefrom the face of mirror facet 21 to generate third scanned reflectedoutput beam 36, the error caused by this second reflection from the faceof mirror facet 21 will exactly cancel the error induced by mirror facet21 during the generation of the first scanned reflected output beam 22.The third scanned reflected output beam 36 will therefore be verticallydisplaced from, but precisely parallel to, input beam 14.

If we assume that input light beam 14 is horizontally oriented anddefine the angle between input light beam 14 and first scanned reflectedoutput beam 22 to be equal to +E, the angle of second scanned reflectedoutput beam 30 with respect to input light beam 14 will be equal to -E.Since the reflector of second scanned output beam 30 from mirror facetsurface 21 will add an error equal to +E to second scanned output beam30, the following angular reorientation will take place as beam 30 isreflected to become beam 36:

    -E+E=0

The above equation mathematically confirms the parallel alignmentbetween input beam 14 and third scanned reflected output beam 36. Forany given positive or negative facet to axis error, prism 24 will in allcases reverse the sign of the facet to axis error as it generates thesecond scanned reflected output beam 30. This error is then cancelledout by a second reflection of the light beam from the mirror facet beingscanned. The result in all cases will be the generation of a thirdscanned reflected output beam 36 which is parallel to, but spaced apartfrom input light beam 14.

Thus repetitive deflections of input light beam 14 by the facets ofpolygon mirror 16 generate or define a family or grouping ofnon-coincident surfaces each of which is defined by the deflection ofthird scanned reflected output beam 36 from each mirror facet. Thesefamily of surfaces are also non-intersecting with respect to input lightbeam 14 as a result of the upward translation of the light beam as itpasses through prism 24.

FIG. 10B depicts the downward displacement of second path 46 along theface of facet 21 caused by the negative facet to axis error of facet 21as illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6.

FIG. 10C depicts the upward displacement of second path 46 along theface of a mirror facet caused by a positive facet to axis error. FIGS.11A-C correspond respectively to FIGS. 10A-C and depict the facet toaxis error and the effect of that error on the spacing between the firstand second paths traced across the respective mirror facet.

As is clearly evident from an inspection of FIGS. 10A-C and 11A-C, theoptical scanning system of the present invention can accommodate facetto axis errors up to a predetermined limit. Beyond that limit, thesecond path travelled by the second scanned reflected output beam willbe displaced either above or below the mirror facet and the opticalscanning system will cease to function. It is estimated that the opticalscanning system of the present invention can accommodate facet to axiserrors of at least plus or minus five degrees. An optical scanner whichutilizes a polygon mirror having an increased vertical dimension incombination with a larger prism may be able to accommodate even largerfacet to axis errors.

Referring now to FIGS. 7-10, a second embodiment of the optical scannerof the present invention will be described. This second embodimentutilizes a prism 24 which is positioned above the plane of polygonmirror 16 and converging means in the form of positive lens 38 which ispositioned below the plane of polygon mirror 16. Laser 10 and relaymirror 12 are also positioned below the plate of polygon mirror 16.Similar reference numbers have been utilized in connection with theillustration of this second embodiment to indicate similar structuralelements of the optical scanner. FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate the operationof this second embodiment of the optical scanner when a mirror facet 20is presented which includes a facet to axis error equal to zero. FIGS. 9and 10 depict the relative relationships between input light beam 14 andthe various scanned reflected output beams caused by a mirror facet 21having a negative facet to axis error.

FIG. 13 illustrates that the modified positioning of the variouselements of this second embodiment of the optical scanner causes inputlight beam 14 to generate a curved first path 44 on the rotating facetof the polygon mirror. For the same reason, second scanned reflectedoutput beam 30 will trace a family of curved, non-intersecting surfaceson the rotating facets of the polygon mirror. The family of curved thirdscanned reflected output beams 36 pass through positive lens 38 which isdesigned to cause the family of parallel oriented, non-intersectingsurfaces to converge into a single curved scanned output beam which isrepetitively scanned across target 64.

Prism 24 is a conventional internal reflecting right angle prism inwhich the adjacent sides of the prism have a tolerance of plus or minusone tenth of one wavelength. In the preferred embodiment of theinvention, prism 24 has a one inch hypotenuse face span and a width ofthree quarters of an inch from end to end. The hypotenuse face shouldinclude an anti-reflective coating to prevent unwanted reflection offirst scanned output beam 22. Alternatively, prism 24 may be slightlyrotated with respect to rotational axis 18 of mirror 16 or it may befabricated with a slight pyramidal error in the hypotenuse to preventunwanted reflections.

In both the FIG. 1 and FIG. 9 embodiments, the angle defined by a lineextending from prism 24 to mirror facet 20 to positive lens 28 is equalto sixty degrees. Prism 24 is spaced thirty degrees above or laterallyaway from a line perpendicular to the facet of polygon mirror 16, whilepositive lens 38 is positioned on a line displaced laterally or belowthat same perpendicular line. Lens 38 is spaced away from polygon mirror16 as required to insure that it collects and refracts the most widelydeflected third scanned reflected output beam 36. As is evident fromFIG. 2, prism 24 must be positioned so that its lower edge does notinterfere with the most widely deflected third scanned reflected outputbeam 36. Once the spacing between lens 38 and the target of the scannedoptical output beam have been determined, the refracting power of lens38 can be set to precisely converge the scanned optical output beam onthe target.

In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, a twenty-foursided rotating mirror having a 4.75 inch spacing between opposing facetsand a facet height of one inch is utilized.

FIG. 14 depicts a planar mirror 72 which is deflected or rotated backand forth within a defined arc by a galvanometer movement 73 coupled tothe mirror. The compensation system of the present invention willeliminate variations in the angle between the plane of mirror 72 and itsaxis of rotation 74 as the mirror is rotated. The errors imparted to thegalvanometer driven mirror are equivalent to facet to axis errors in apolygon mirror system and are therefore eliminated by the presentinvention. The dotted line representation of mirror 72 illustrates thetype of mirror position errors corrected by the present invention.

In yet another embodiment of the invention, one may utilize a singlemirror facet coupled to the edge of a rotating disc. Dynamicdisplacement of the mirror facet will generate rotational axis errorsequivalent to the facet to axis error discussed above and will beeliminated by the present invention. The present invention will alsoeliminate facet to axis errors created by mirrors rotated by other meanssuch as a tuning fork, a cam or other rotating device.

FIG. 15 depicts another configuration of the optical scanner in which anequilateral prism 68 is substituted for a ninety degree prism. Asindicated, laser 10, prism 68 and positive lens 38 must be repositionedto permit the optical scanner to function in accordance with theteachings of the present invention. Various other prism configurationscan be utilized if the input light source, lens and prism are properlypositioned with respect to polygon mirror 16.

Referring now to FIG. 16, target 64 comprises an optically transmissivesurface scanned by the optical output beam. An optical detector 70 canbe positioned adjacent the rear surface of target 64 as illustrated inFIG. 16 or, alternatively, can be positioned to receive light reflectedfrom the scanned surface of target 64. Detector 70 measures variationsin the intensity of the transmitted or reflected beam to detectimperfections in the surface of target 64, to read information stored ontarget 64 or to accomplish various other functions which are well knownto those skilled in the art.

FIG. 17 illustrates that the optical scanning system of the presentinvention may utilize a broad input beam 14 having a diameter on theorder of the facet height of polygon mirror 16. The first scannedreflected output beam 22 and the second scanned reflected output beam 30are essentially coincident with one another, but travel in opposingdirections. The third scanned reflected output beam 36 is directedthrough and converged by positive lens 38 exactly as has been describedabove.

The optical scanner of the present invention may be used as an elementof an image generating device. In this configuration, the intensity ofthe output signal from laser 10 is modulated as the scanned outputsignal from the optical scanner is deflected across a photosensitivematerial. The photosensitive material is displaced at the end of eachscan so that an entire image can be rapidly recreated on thephotosensitive surface.

FIG. 18 indicates that a detector 76 can be substituted for laser 10. Inthis configuration, the optical scanner of the present inventionfunctions as a receiving device to indicate the presence, intensity andazimuth of a photon source 78 which lies within the scanner field ofview. The scanner field of view is defined by the various mirrorparameters, but in a high speed polygon mirror scanner havingtwenty-four facets, the field of view may be on the order of fifteendegrees. A synchronization circuit is typically coupled to the rotatingmirror in order to determine the relative angular position of the mirrorduring each scan for the purpose of indicating the azimuth of photonsource 78.

Detector 76 normally includes an image intensification device such as atelescope and a beam collimator in combination with a photon detectorwhich is sensitive to the wavelength or range of wavelengths ofinterest. In the receiving mode, positive lens 38 collects and convergesthe diverging radiant energy rays from source 78 into a substantiallycollimated beam 81 and directs that collimated beam onto the surface ofmirror facet 20. The reflection of the collimated beam from the sourceof mirror facet 20 produces a first scanned reflected collimated beam 80which travels into prism 24. Prism 24 redirects the first scannedreflected collimated beam 80 back onto the surface of mirror facet 20along a second path to generate a second scanned reflected collimatedbeam 82. The second scanned reflected collimated beam 82 is reflectedagain from the surface of mirror facet 20 and is directed into detector76. Reference number 84 designates the output beam which is reflectedfrom relay mirror 12 and directed into detector 76. Output beam 84maintains a constant angular position with respect to the vertical planeof the optical scanner as a result of the facet to axis error correctioncompensation system of the present invention.

FIGS. 10A-C, 11A-C and 12 are directly analogous to the operation of theoptical scanner receiver depicted in FIG. 18 except that the arrowsindicating the direction of travel of the various optical beams in FIG.11 must be reversed.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the disclosedoptical scanner may be modified in numerous other ways and may assumemany other embodiments in addition to the various preferred formsspecifically set out and described above. Accordingly, it is intended bythe appended claims to cover all such modifications of the inventionwhich may fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

Referring now to FIGS. 19A and 19B, a more complex and sophisticatedversion of the optical scanner invention will now be described indetail. This embodiment uses a pair of synchronized mirrors to doublethe scan efficiency of the optical scanner in comprison to the singlemirror optical scanner embodiment described above.

The optical scanner depicted in FIG. 19 includes two cooperative, butdistinct elements. The first element will be referred to as an opticalbeam pulse generator 102 and the second element includes a dual mirroroptical scanner 104. An electric motor 106 includes an output shaft 108,the lower end of which drives beam pulse generator 102 and the upper endof which drives optical scanner 104. An input light beam 110 isgenerated by a laser or equivalent device and is directed as indicatedonto segmented reflecting means in the form of segmented mirror 112.Segmented mirror 112 includes a plurality of spaced apart mirror facets114 which each include a potentially different facet to axis error. Inthe embodiment depicted in FIG. 19, segmented mirror 112 takes the formof a cogged wheel which includes a gap 116 between each pair of adjacentmirror facets 114.

When the optical scanner is in the position depicted in FIG. 19A, inputlight beam 110 passes through gap 116 and is reflected by relay mirror118 onto a facet of first polygon mirror 120. This particularconfiguration of input light beam 110 is designated as pulsednon-reflected output beam 122 of beam pulse generator 102 since beam 122is sequentially interrupted by segmented mirror 112, yet is notreflected by the mirror facets 114 of mirror 112. The reflection of beam122 by relay mirror 118 forms the upper input beam 124 which issequentially directed onto the mirror facets of first polygon mirror120. The rotational displacement of first polygon mirror 120 convertsupper input beam 124 onto first scan 126 which is directed into firstredirecting means 128.

First redirecting means 128 redirects the first scan 126 back onto firstpolygon mirror 120 to form a first redirected scan 130 in the mannerdescribed in connection with the single mirror embodiment above. Firstredirected scan 130 is reflected from first polygon mirror 120 togenerate a plurality of first output scans 132 which define a family ofnon-coincident surfaces. The first redirected scan 130 is verticallydisplaced from first scan 126 by a distance related to the facet to axiserror of mirror facet 134 of first polygon mirror 120. The firstredirected scan 130 is laterally displaced from first scan 126 by adistance related to the relative angle between mirror facet 134 andupper input beam 124. First output scan 132 intercepts converging meansor lens 136 which converges the family of first output scans 132 onto afixed path 138.

FIG. 19B depicts the optical scanner in a position in which segmentedmirror 112 has rotated to a point where mirror facet 114 intercepts andreflects input beam 110, generating pulsed beam 140 which is directedinto redirecting means 142. Redirecting means 142 redirects pulsed beam140 back onto mirror facet 114 where it is reflected from that mirrorfacet a second time to generate pulsed reflected output beam 144.

Pulsed reflected output beam 144 intercepts relay mirrors 146 and 148.The reflection of pulsed reflected output beam 144 from relay mirror 148generates lower input beam 150 which is directed onto mirror facet 152of second polygon mirror 154.

The reflection of lower input beam 150 by mirror facet 152 generatessecond scan 156 which is redirected by second redirecting means 158 toform a second redirected scan 160. The reflection of second redirectedscan 160 by mirror facet 152 generates a plurality of second outputscans 162 which pass through and are converged by converging means 136onto fixed path 138.

The phase angle between first polygon mirror 120 and second polygonmirror 154 can be adjusted as desired to create an optical output beamwhich has the appropriate pulse width characteristics for a specificapplication. The optical beam pulse generator depicted in FIG. 19 can bereadily fabricated and can be assembled in a highly compact unit. Theeconomics realized by utilizing a single electric motor 106 to driveboth optical scanner 104 as well as beam pulse generator 102 areapparent. The output shaft 108 of motor 106 defines the vertical axis ofthe system solely for the purpose of reference in the detaileddescription of the invention. Motor 106 and shaft 108 can be positionedwith any desired orientation with substantially no effect on theoperation of the optical scanner invention.

Redirecting means 128, 142 and 158 typically take the form of ninetydegree prisms which are commercially available and comparativelyinexpensive. Redirecting means in other forms such as corner reflectormirrors can be substituted from prisms in a manner well known to one ofordinary skill in the art. In optical beam pulse generator 102, prism142 is required only to eliminate facet to axis errors created by mirrorfacets 114. If segmented reflecting means 112 is of an extremely highquality where facet to axis errors are negligible, redirecting means 142can be eliminated. Prism 142 has been depicted in FIG. 19 in a positionshifted to the right of its actual operating position to simplify andclarify the drawing. Correct prism alignment can be readily determinedby trial and error positioning.

A significant advantage of this particular embodiment of the inventionis that the power of each scanned output beam is equal to the full powerof each separate optical input signal. Any scanning devicesincorporating a beam splitter which operates to divide a single inputsignal into two or more component parts inherently suffers degradedperformance caused by a substantial loss in power of the scanned outputsignal.

FIG. 20 depicts a substantially different embodiment of the inventiondepicted in FIG. 19 but operates in substantially the same way toachieve substantially the same results as the optical scanner depictedin FIG. 19. In the embodiment depicted in FIG. 20, a pair ofgalvanometer driven mirrors 120 and 154 have been substituted forpolygon mirrors 120 and 154. The FIG. 20 embodiment also achievesdoubled scan efficiency in comparison to the embodiment of the inventiondisclosed in FIGS. 1-18 above.

FIG. 21 depicts a simplified, single mirror embodiment of the inventionwhich utilizes converging lens 136 as the second optical element of abeam expander or telescope formed from lens 164 and lens 136. This beamexpander configuration can be utilized either with the single or doublemirror embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 22 illustrates another version of the dual mirror embodiment of thepresent invention in which two different light input sources areprovided in lieu of the optical beam pulse generator configurationdepicted in FIG. 19. In the FIG. 22 embodiment, the two separate opticalinput signals can be of different wave lengths or can be of otherdistinctive characteristics.

FIGS. 23A, B and C illustrate the manner in which an optical inputsignal is reflected from and transitions between two adjacent facets ofa polygon mirror.

Referring now to FIGS. 24A-E, the effect of different optical inputsignal configurations on the characteristic of the optical output beamare depicted. FIG. 24A represents a perspective view showing theconfiguration of first and second redirecting means with respect tofirst and second mirrors. FIG. 24B depicts a first input signal 166which intercepts the facets of first polygon mirror 120 from a positionoff axis above, while a second input signal 168 intercepts the facets ofpolygon mirror 154 from a position off axis below. FIG. 24C indicatesthat input signal 166 produces a curved output scan 170, while inputsignal 168 generates a curved output scan 172.

FIG. 24D depicts parallel input beams 174 and 176 intercepting thefacets of mirrors 120 and 154 from a position off axis below to generatethe curved output scan 178 depicted in FIG. 24E.

FIG. 25 illustrates yet another embodiment of the present inventionwhich essentially comprises a hybrid of the single mirror opticalscanner depicted in FIG. 1 and the dual mirror optical scanner depictedin FIG. 19. In the FIG. 25 embodiment, the phase angle between polygonmirrors 120 and 154 of FIG. 19 has essentially been set equal to zero,yielding a single polygon mirror 180 having a plurality of extremelylong facets. Two, three or more input light beams, each havingpotentially different wave lengths or other optical characteristics, aredirected onto the facets of polygon mirror 180 and are redirected bytwo, three or more redirecting means back onto the facets of polygonmirror 180. The single scanned optical output beam produced by the FIG.25 embodiment includes all three optical input signals. A scannerembodiment of this type could be used for a number of different purposesincluding the generation of the horizontal component of a televisionraster scan. The vertical deflection of such a three color output signalcould be added at any convenient point such as the line designated byreference No. 182.

Since all of the optical scanner embodiments described above can be usedto scan in either a transmit or receive mode, all such scanners can beused to inspect surfaces illuminated by a coherent light source. In theinspection embodiment, an item such as a printed circuit board beingexamined for defects is incrementally displaced past the scan plane by adevice such as a stepper motor. An information processing device issubstituted for the light input sources described above in connectionwith the transmitting version of the present invention.

FIG. 26 depicts an optical beam pulse generator of the type described inconnection with FIG. 19. This embodiment includes a single lens 136 toconverge the pulsed reflected output beam 144. The pulsed non-reflectedoutput beam 122 (not shown) does not require converging since it ismerely a chopped output beam without facet to axis errors.

FIGS. 27, 28A, 29, 30A and 31 depict various other embodiments ofsegmented mirror 112 which are compatible with the beam pulse generatorof the present invention. The diagonally shaded areas of the segmentedmirror 112 depicted in FIG. 28A represent reflective areas. Thesegmented mirror 112 depicted in FIG. 29 is supported and driven by thethree idler wheels that contact the circumference of the mirror. In FIG.31, each of the round mirrors may be glued to or otherwise secured tothe arms of segmented mirror assembly 112. The extreme facet to axiserrors created by such a crude form of mirror coupling will beeliminated by the unique and automatic compensation system of thepresent invention. The cost of fabricating such a segmented mirror 112is extremely low.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the variousembodiments of the optical scanner and beam pulse generator inventionsdescribed above may be modified in numerous ways and may assume manyother embodiments in addition to the various preferred forms describedin FIGS. 19-30. Accordingly, it is intended by the appended claims tocover all such modifications of the invention which may fall within thetrue spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. An optical beam pulse generator comprising:a. asegmented reflecting means aligned to receive an input light beam andincluding a plurality of circumferentially spaced apart mirror facetsdefining a gap between each pair of adjacent facets and having acentrally located, vertically oriented axis of rotation, the reflectivesurfaces of the mirror facets being oriented substantially perpendicularto the axis of rotation of said segmented reflecting means and includingmirror facet to axis errors; b. means for rotating said segmentedreflecting means to sequentially reflect the input beam to generate apulsed beam; c. means for redirecting the pulsed beam back onto saidsegmented reflecting means to generate a redirected pulsed beamvertically displaced from the pulsed beam by a distance related to themirror facet to axis error and laterally offset from the pulsed beam bya distance related to the angle between the mirror facet and the inputlight beam, wherein the redirected pulsed beam is reflected from each ofsaid mirror facets to generate a pulsed reflected output beam; and d.the input beam being aligned to alternatively pass through the gaps insaid segmented reflecting means such that the optical beam pulsegenerator alternatively produces pulsed non-reflected output beams andpulsed reflected output beams.
 2. The beam pulse generator of claim 1further including means for converging the pulsed reflected output beamonto a fixed target.
 3. The beam pulse generator of claim 1 wherein saidredirecting means comprises a prism.
 4. The beam pulse generator ofclaim 3 wherein said prism includes a 90° prism.
 5. The beam pulsegenerator of claim 4 wherein said prism includes a hypotenuse faceoriented parallel to the axis of rotation of said reflecting means. 6.The beam pulse generator of claim 1 wherein said segmented reflectingmeans includes a cogged wheel.